Rain Bird Impact Drive Sprinkler Head - 1990

Plaque Wording: The Rain Bird horizontal action
impact drive sprinkler head was invented in 1933 by Orton
Englehardt, a citrus grower and native of Glendora. The design
offered slow rotation and uniform watering, benefits long sought by
local irrigators. Clement M. LaFetra, a friend of Englehardt, urged
early patent application. A patent was awarded on December 18,
1933. Englehardt, with no entrepreneurial aspirations, assigned all
rights to LaFetra and his wife Mary Elizabeth. Production began in
the LaFetra family barn on October 13, 1935. Certain American
Indians believed that a bird brought rain. This ancient legend, and
the sprinkler's application of water like raindrops, led to the
name: Rain Bird. Efficient use of water is commonly enhanced with
sprinkler irrigation. The impact sprinkler led to sprinkler
irrigation development that currently exceeds fifty million acres
world wide. In the USA, more than one third of all irrigated land
is irrigated by sprinklers, including sandy and sloping land that
cannot be irrigated practically by other methods. The impact drive
sprinkler head has truly had a major effect on agriculture in the
world. Dedicated By The American Society Of Agricultural Engineers
1990